Best ~23-24" LED monitor for Gaming/Movies/GFX all round

[V3rge]

I have been using a 19" CRT for about 4 years now (my other one got so blurry I couldnt read any text, and the back has literally melted!), and smaller onces before then. I have never owned a TFT before but have been looking to buy one for years. I have recently been doing alot of review reading about many of the LED-LCD screens around the 23"-24" range but have seen many conflicting reviews which put me off buying one of the monitors I wanted. I was hoping that manufactures would be bringing out 16:10 LED backlit screens but it doesn't look like thats ever going to happen so I will be going with a 16:9.

Now, I live in New Zealand, so we don't always get new monitors to quick here, if at all. Some of the prices are totally out of whack between competitors screens also.

If you want to see which monitors i'm able to get here, follow the link (prices are in NZD):
http://pricespy.co.nz/category.php?k=393#rparams=l=s65734522

The budget im aiming for is $500NZD (roughly $400USD), I would much prefer a high end screen then a low end budget one.

Now the screen I need has to be fast, preferably really fast. So a TN panel is what im aiming for. I really cant stand input lag or low refresh rates in games or outside. I do ALOT of Photoshop work, CAD design, Movie watching and Gaming so I need something that will handle all tasks exceptionally well and equally. I also want HDMI and DVI inputs, other inputs are not important. Put simply, I need and want Colour, Speed, Contrast, Vibrance and Functionality.

Initially I was going to go out and buy a Samsung PX2370 but I came across a number of reviews in which the reviewers gave much better reviews of other screens which are much cheaper and performed better.
Some of the other screens ive looked at are the Samsung BX2450, BX2440 ($150 price difference?) , some of the LG, ACER and ASUS ones but the one im leaning towards right now is the LG W2486L. Unfortunately its an older screen, and I would prefer a newer one given the option.

I'm looking for your personal opinions, if you own a great screen or have done your own research then feel free to suggest an option.

All factors considered, what monitor do you think is most appropriate, or "the best"?

 

[rofl_my_waffle]

TN panel = fast but the worst colours available for monitors.
VA panels = ok colour, best contrast but the slowest response time
IPS panels = professional grade colours with pretty good response times but not the best.

I can't recommend TN because they have trashy colours, terrible viewing angles, and only 6-bit colour so any gradient would have banding.

IPS panels do not have viewing angle issues and most of them are 8-bit colour.

A cheaper H-IPS panel would be the Dell U2410 but being cheaper isn't very cheap since MSRP is $500USD. Or the cheaper type e-IPS is also available in the HP ZR24W. Its also 1920x1200 resolution at 24" but cost $400USD MSRP of course. You can find both for quite a bit cheaper if you were to shop in north america. However in your case I have absolutely no idea.

Also white LEDs do not have better colour saturation than CCFLs. They are only something manufacturers rave about to sell people new product. In any case, the HP ZR24W use wide gamut CCFL for 82%(?) NTSC colour saturation while the Dell U2410 sports even wider gamut CCFLs for 110% NTSC colour saturation. Typical is 72%, while white LEDs is only good for 68%.

If they don't fit your budget or you can't get them. How about a NEC EA232WMi. Its a 23" e-IPS panel with full 8-bit colour and LED backlight, theres a CCFL backlit version the NEC EA231WMi. 23" @ 1920x1080.

Maybe try a Benq EW2420, its A-MVA panel or a Samsung F2380, a cPVA panel. Both with 8-bit colour and very good contrast ratio. Unfortunately response time is a bit lacking.

 

[V3rge]

Thanks for your replies.
I have taken a look at some of the monitors you suggest, but some of them aren't avaliable in the country.
The Dell U2410 is out of the question at over $1000NZD here.
The HP ZR24W is $550-$600NZD here and I am taking it into consideration. I really like the 16:10 and the fact it is an 8bit screen but I am quite concerned about the speed of the screen. According to the HP website the response time is 7ms which im thinking would be unacceptable playing competitive FPS games at anything up to and over 200fps.
Since i've never seen a true 8bit screen (even an IPS panel for that matter) I have no basis to compare it with any of the TN panels i have seen, everyone I know has a TN over here.
I'm willing to sacrifice the the extra colours for a faster screen in any case (lower refresh rate and less image delay) since I can see a bad 60Hz screen refreshing and it hurts my eyes.

Is there any chance you have experience with the HP ZR24W or a similar screen?